Homeward bound

Here we are, back in Chicago. The weather seems a little cooler; not so humid. We are all in the Main Hall, which is 4 or 5 stories high with marble floors and long walnut benches, like church pews on steroids. The fearsome four are playing another game of Egyptian Rat Killer, as are the high schoolers. We took over one end of the lounge car from DC to CHI yesterday and played cards and Bananagrams all afternoon and into the night. The little girls collected some new friends as other travelling kids migrated to where they were and joined in the card games. I stuck it out until 1230 am, then called it quits and headed for my seat. We hit Chicago just after 8 am CST and we are here until 3 pm when we board our last train for Newton. We have had a wonderful time. Overall, everybody has gotten along good. I have received compliments on the kids' behavior. None of our group was with the 9 who got stuck in an elevator at the hotel for a half hour. (They had to call the fire department). We mostly stayed awake during the final 3 hour session when the awards were handed out, and those who didn't will have their picture loaded on this blog after we get home. We learned that we never want to sit near New Horizons Middle School from Florida, because they SCREAM every time one of their members was called up on stage. We learned about how to avoid panhandlers, to always cross with the "walking man," and that M and H mean Marriot and Hilton, not middle school and high school. We learned your roommates appreciate you more when you bathe everyday, and Fabreeze is your friend when they don't. If we had worn pedometers, they would have maxed out after the third day, but the weather cooled down to the 80's, so we didn't mind the mileage as much. Thanks for the pleasure of your children, young men and women. It's been grea!